Shoot Susan! SHOOT!
by Strangely Tawny
Summary: Basically this is a response to Susan's reluctance to shoot the bear in 'Prince Caspian'. It really annoyed me, hence the less than pleasant tone. If you don't like it, don't review! I'd rather not hear your complaints. Constructive criticism only please!
1. Susan

**Ok, so my profile lies, I **_**am**_** doing something other than my epic novel length fic'… **

**What can I say? I'm a weak vessel! **

**So, I was watching **_**Prince Caspian**_** (yet again*) and noticed that in the scene when Lucy is attacked by the bear, Susan hesitated about shooting the beast intent on **_**ripping her little sister to shreds**_**, leaving Trumpkin to kill it instead – and he'd barely known Lucy for more than a few days! How long had Susan known and loved Lucy? **

**My point exactly. **

**Pardon my rant, but what I mean to articulate is: what **_**the**__**hell**_**? I'm an older sister, and I wouldn't hesitate to shoot or otherwise kill **_**anything **_**that wanted my little brother dead. So what on earth was up with Susan? **

**Well here's my theory, correct me if I'm wrong. [The various POVs are simple self-indulgence, seeing as I'm a die-hard fan – just not of Susan, hence this fic'.]**

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She was helping to drag the boat up the beach when she heard Trumpkin shout, and then the Bear's angry grunts. She spun round and watched in horror as her little sister sprinted and stumbled away from the enormous Bear. Instinctively she drew her bow and fitted an arrow, aiming at the Beast unwaveringly. She felt impelled to call out, just in case the Bear thought Lucy was some sort of Telmarine and wanted its revenge.

_But that's ridiculous, Lucy had called out to the Bear, reassured it that they were friends…_

"Stay away from her!" she shouted, and felt her heart clench painfully as the Bear closed the gap between itself and her sister with great rolling strides. She heard her brothers pile back into the boat, retrieving their swords,

_Stop, she's just a child._ She thought, desperately – why would a Bear attack a child?

"Shoot Susan! _Shoot!"_ she heard Edmund yell, the frustration in his voice painfully clear, but she didn't. Something told her that the Bear would stop. It had to. She waited for it to back down, reluctant to kill one of her own subjects, not matter what it was up to. But it didn't back down, and its eyes were trained on Lucy.

_Please stop._ She silently begged the Bear.

She heard her brothers sprint towards the Bear, drawing their swords as they flew across the stones. She knew they'd be past her any minute and then they'd be in her line of fire. Her brave, brave brothers would deal with it. There was a reason she was an archer, not a swordsman. She knew she was waiting for her brothers to deal with it. Because she knew she didn't have the stomach for close combat. Still, she willed the Bear with all her heart,

_Please just stop, don't –_

Lucy tripped, and the Bear reared up, looming over Lucy and roared ferociously, exposing every single one of its stained teeth, its claws reaching for Lucy to deliver a killing swipe.

_Oh dear God, no–!_

Lucy screamed, and it held a note of pure terror –

And then a plain fletched arrow hit the Bear in the chest and with a terrible groan it reeled back and fell dead on its side.

In the stillness of the moment, Susan saw her sister turn to look at her, but seeing her arrow still on the bow, looked past her…

At Trumpkin. Susan turned, lowering her bow, and saw the dwarf drop the bow and stomp over.

"Why wouldn't he stop?" she asked dumbly, the question still revolving around her head.

"I suspect he was hungry." The dwarf said coldly, not breaking stride or even addressing her correctly, as a Queen of Narnia.

And with a stab of guilt, Susan realised she didn't deserve anything at the moment, except perhaps a slap from her little sister, who she would have let die. She felt her brothers' accusing stares on her face. She cast them a quick, searching look, to judge what they thought. But they were already running to their sister. She looked away, at her feet, there was no way she'd escape the repercussions of this.

She watched as her brothers' sword tips were trained on the Bear, as Peter hauled Lucy up and held her protectively to his side, sword never leaving its mark. Susan didn't miss how Lucy's hands were white-knuckled into Peter's tunic, how her fists shook almost imperceptibly. She wisely hung back as she moved over to the others; mothering Lucy now would only mean Edmund silently branding her a hypocrite, and Peter's flat gaze of blame, and worst of all Lucy's unspoken doubt in her sister.

"Thanks," Lucy said very quietly. Trumpkin gave her a steady look, one that spoke of an unconscious sense of duty.

"He was wild," Edmund said, his voice tinged by surprise. Trumpkin poked the corpse with a stick, watching it carefully.

"I don't think he could talk at all." Peter said, and sounded sad at the realisation. Trumpkin half turned to speak again,

"When you're treated like a dumb animal long enough, that's what you become." Lucy glanced back at Susan, who quickly looked away. There was no chance she'd be able to look her sister in the face the same way again. Her siblings turned to look at her, and Lucy seemed to read Susan's shame and yet did nothing, only turning back to Trumpkin and the dead Bear. Peter and Edmund gave her identical looks of cold condemnation that made Susan's pride flair and her heart sink. Then they turned away, dismissing her in lieu of more important matters.

"You may find Narnia a more savage place than you remember." The dwarf continued, drawing a knife and slitting the Bear's throat. Lucy gasped and buried her face in Peter's tunic, silent sobs wracking her slender frame. Peter handed his sword to Edmund and hugged Lucy to him, rubbing circles in her back. Edmund sheathed his own sword and then went to Trumpkin's side, talking with him quietly to give Lucy some space.

Leaving Susan to stand alone, dropped from the team.

---

She was called 'Gentle' for a reason. Until that moment, Susan had always believed it was to reflect how she preferred compromise to violence, diplomacy to war. But now she knew it was to reflect how she didn't have the spine for killing at all, even though she'd been called to battle several times by necessity.

Father Christmas had read her character correctly by knowing she would prefer not to get up close and personal with her victims. Knowing that she'd prefer to talk rather than act decisively. He'd read her ultimate weakness.

Never again did Susan believe she was truly worthy of any other title, seeing as Aslan's fitted her so well.

And even though she fought ferociously, and killed many, at Miraz's castle, at Aslan's How, and in the forest, she knew it was only to prove to the others – to herself – that she had the stomach to fight at all.

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*** = damn you Ben Barnes, you're just too gorgeous! [Yes, I'll admit it, I'm a weak vessel]**

**Please read and review, I'll love you forever! **


	2. Lucy

**Ok, here's the others' POV on what happened, I just reckoned I'd get Susan out of the way first, seeing as most of the ideas for her came first. **

**Here's Lucy's. **

**[Big hugs to anyone who's reviewed – you're good kind people!]**

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Lucy had been really pleased to see the Bear, thinking it would be wonderful to talk to a Beast after nearly a year (or 1300, depending on how you looked at it) away from her beloved Narnia and its peoples.

She turned look at Trumpkin, not understanding why he would be warning her.

But then she turned back to the Bear and understood. It was loping towards her in a distinctly predatory manner. Knowing her dagger would be useless, she turned and fled. She heard the Bear's grunting breaths and they seemed to be right behind her, and pushed herself to run faster. But her legs were too short, too weak.

"Stay away from her!" she heard her sister shout, and felt a surge of relief, knowing that Susan wouldn't hesitate to shoot the Bear if it didn't stop.

"Shoot Susan! _Shoot!_" she heard Edmund scream, and felt herself echo the sentiment in the last remaining relatively calm part of her brain echoed the sentiment.

_Yes Susan, please shoot the Bear… anytime now would be nice. _She saw her brothers charging towards her, swords drawn, Trumpkin was headfirst in the boat and Susan… Susan was standing there, reading to shoot, but motionless. In that moment time slowed for Lucy, Susan wore a look of intense concentration, but there was something in the back of her eyes – something Lucy had never seen before. Something that filled her with true fear.

Uncertainty.

As Lucy's numb brain struggled to process what it meant, she felt her toe catch on the hem of her confounded dress and as she hit the dirt prayed fervently that Susan would do something. She rolled onto her back and saw the Bear towering over her on its hind legs, it was about to deal her a blow from a claw filled paw. Lucy saw her death in those rage filled eyes and instinctively screamed, giving voice to her fear.

Where on _earth_ was Susan?!

And then an arrow struck it down, and Lucy couldn't help but feel relieved as she watched the bear cry out and keel over. There was a moment of stillness. Then she rolled over to look at Susan, to give her the reassuring smile that she'd done the right thing. But Susan was still armed. She looked beyond her sister and saw Trumpkin's bare bow.

And in that moment it hit her; Susan hadn't done it, had doubted whether she could save her. And had just proved that she couldn't. It filled her with fear – Peter had always told them they were supposed to be a team, a family, and that meant they were supposed to work together, trust each other, _save_ each other.

Susan had just taught her that she didn't believe Peter's words. She didn't believe they were a team, that they should save each other.

Next thing she knew Peter had seized her by the arm and dragged her to her feet, pulling her tight to his chest. Lucy clung to him, gripping his tunic as tight as she could, too afraid to speak. She could hear his heart hammering wildly as she pressed her head against him and knew that he had been as scared as her.

Well, at least her brothers believed in what Peter had told them.

She heard her sister talk to Trumpkin, and heard his surly reply. As he stood over the bear she managed to croak out a 'thanks', but didn't trust herself to speak. She sneaked a look at Susan, who summarily avoided her gaze. Lucy swallowed, afraid of her sister, of what she was capable of, and turned back to Trumpkin. It wasn't until the red dwarf slit the Beast's throat that Lucy quietly lost control and buried her face in her brother's tunic, silently sobbing.

If Susan wasn't part of the team, was it still a team? Would Ed and Peter still protect her? Would anything be protected? Would _Narnia _be protected? If they couldn't look after themselves, how could they look after their country??

Peter was rubbing soothing circles on her back and enveloping her in a tight hug; he was whispering something about her being safe now. She highly doubted that. But she calmed herself down enough to stop hiccupping and pulled away slightly, searching his eyes for the terrible truth she now knew. Had it been hidden in his eyes the whole time?

---

Lucy was called the 'Valiant' for the simple reason that she was strong, spirited and brave… but sometimes – at crucial times - she relied on her siblings to reinforce that strength. This was one of those times when her strength failed her, and her siblings didn't know how to restore it. And it was only when Edmund had stuck up for her when nobody believed she'd seen Aslan.

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**So… next up is Edmund and Peter's chapt. They're together in this fic, because they're of one mind about what happened. **


	3. Peter and Edmund

**Ok, my favourite character's time is nigh! [Finally…] **

**So this is the final chapt, and I definitely had the most fun writing this – Edmund definitely cemented his place in my Favourites File after 'Prince Caspian' he was the go-to guy for any work you wanted done well. Or done at all as the case may be! **

**I found it hard to believe the level of incompetency in some of the other characters… in this case Susan took the brunt of my wrath. **

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Edmund strained to yank the boat up the beach, cursing his youth. It had been very hard for all of them to suddenly return to childhood after decades of ruling, and Peter in particular had been hit very hard by the transfer. He'd been High King – to suddenly be a child again, to be answerable to every adult…

Lucy wandered off, as usual, and Edmund vaguely heard her voice calling to something – probably a squirrel or some other innocuous creature.

They were all busy with the boat, making sure that it was secure, when they heard Trumpkin's shout and turning, Edmund's stomach went very squishy as he saw his little sister running from the bear intent on killing her. As one person, he and Peter dove back into the boat for their weapons.

_Why now, of all times? Couldn't they just take a break from being attacked?_

"Stay away from her!" Peter heard Susan's authoritative shout, and felt substantial relief – Susan would check it's progress if it didn't stop. They snatched up their swords and tossed the scabbards aside, sprinting back towards the Bear. As they ran back, Peter saw Susan was still motionless, perfectly lined up for the shot, but she hadn't taken it.

Edmund was furious, knowing they may not get there in time, so, like a military commander he gently prompted her,

"Shoot Susan! _Shoot!"_ yet still she remained totally focused and motionless. Peter felt a surge of irrational rage at Susan and considerable fear for Lucy. They wouldn't reach her in time!

_What the hell was Susan doing, calculating wind interference or something? _

Then Peter's heat nearly stopped when he saw in slow motion Lucy trip on her hem and fall.

_Oh dear God not again! Why does she always have to fall over at the worst moments? _

Edmund was running like a bat out of hell to reach Lucy, matching Peter's strides as they tore up the beach. And he cursed his youth all over again – their legs weren't carrying them quickly enough!

Neither brother could understand the Bear or their sister's strange behaviour, but they knew that they'd have to sort it out themselves.

_Typical._

Kill the bear and then shake some sense into Susan until her teeth rattled in her head.

And then Lucy fell, and Edmund cursed Susan with all his heart. He didn't remember feeling that much anger towards his sister since before they entered Narnia the first time. Lucy screamed, and Edmund screamed too in his mind. But it was a bit different to Lucy's,

_I swear on Aslan's claws that if she doesn't shoot right now, I'll personally…_

But miraculously the bear was shot, and it keeled over and lay still. Edmund skidded to a halt, Peter pulled up short as well, sword hanging useless in limp fingers as they stared at the two forms on the ground. Lucy turned to look at them, and her gaze slid to Trumpkin. Peter followed her gaze to look at the dwarf, who set down his bow and was now marching towards the pair.

Edmund and Peter exchanged a very brief look of confusion and anger, before turning a tried and tested gaze onto Susan.

_How could you? _Peter thought, mind whirling with confusion.

_Why on earth did you even bother to bring it with you? You've made it clear you don't want to use it protecting your family. _Edmund was substantially more bitter and venomous in his thoughts.

Realising that Bear could jump up at any moment, both brothers ran to Lucy, who was hauled to her feet and pulled away from the bear by Peter. While Edmund kept his sword trained on the Bear's head, more than ready to chop its sodding head off if it so much as twitched. Reassuringly, he knew Peter was thinking the same thing.

"Why wouldn't he stop?" Peter heard Susan ask, and despite himself, rolled his eyes, hugging Lucy to him. Trying to calm his erratic heart rate. He heard Edmund snort quietly yet derisively. Oh yeah, Ed certainly had the right idea.

"I suspect he was hungry," they heard Trumpkin snap; clearly the dwarf thought she was acting stupidly as well.

Edmund, regarding his brother's pale face, wondered if this constant peril that Lucy seemed to get herself into was good for Peter's health. His blood pressure must be off the charts. And for an eighteen-year-old, that wasn't good.

It was only then that he thought about the Bear's motive.

"He was wild," Edmund remarked, throwing the idea out there for debate. Peter shot him an affirming look,

"I don't think he could talk at all," Edmund regarded the bear again, and sighed, shaking his head. What had Narnia become?

Peter gripped Lucy to him, fighting the urge to carry her under his arm and run back to the boat. At least they'd be relatively safe on the river. He didn't fail to miss the way she shook under his arm, and how tightly she was gripping his tunic.

"When you're treated like a dumb animal long enough, that's what you become." Trumpkin said, peering at the Beast, gauging if it was going to get up again or not. Edmund felt a deep sadness in his chest.

Peter on the other hand, thought of Susan, and turned to look at her, she didn't meet his eye.

_See? You were treated like a child again for so long that you started to believe it. You became an ignorant child again. How could you lose your nerve like that? What's wrong with you?_

Edmund gave her an identical look of blame

"You may find Narnia a more savage place than you remember." The dwarf continued, slicing through the Bear's throat as a precaution. Peter silently agreed with the dwarf though, Narnia had become something out of his most warped nightmares. At least when the White Witch was in power Narnia's inhabitants weren't hunted down and killed merely for existing – at least she had a slightly more justifiable reason for putting down insubordination.

He heard Lucy burst into tears all over his tunic and quickly handed his sword to Edmund who walked over to Trumpkin for a little chat. Lucy was nearly hysterical – big tears rolled down her face and she shuddered in his grip, despite his soothing words and reassurances. Something had really rattled her, and Peter knew it had something to do with Susan not killing the Bear. Then she pulled away and searched his eyes for something. Peter didn't understand, but gently wiped away her tears with the cuff of his sleeve – he hated to see her cry.

"So, are all the Beasts now dumb animals again?" Edmund asked seriously, wondering how on earth he'd explain that to Aslan. It was all their fault! If only they hadn't stumbled across the lantern again!

"Some," Trumpkin replied, "but usually just the ones who are alone and don't have friends around them to remind them of what they are." Edmund nodded, and examined the Bear,

"It was very hungry – the poor thing was starving." He plucked some of the fur out, "It was sick…" he felt the overwhelming urge to be sick himself, but controlled the nausea. And yet again he felt the weight of responsibility fall onto his shoulders, [again].

Susan was unreliable for even the simplest task of protecting her own family – so she was out of the Competent Squad.

Peter was a bundle of nerves on the verge of a stroke from all his self-inflated stress. Along with serious guilt and superiority issues, he was spending more time being silently self-critical and haughty with everyone else, trying to give off the impression he had everything covered and under control.

Lucy was rightfully distraught about the Bear's terrible suffering and Susan's betrayal – _he couldn't think of a more apt word for her cowardly behaviour – _and would need a lot of looking after and reassuring.

So it fell to Edmund to keep everything running in as smooth and cohesive a manner as humanly possible.

---

Edmund had been fairly disgusted by Susan and Peter's behaviour. It didn't stop him being outwardly supportive and helpful; organising the troops and directing the assault on the castle which turned into a bloodbath. He hadn't liked the idea but had gone with it, trusting his brother's tactical skills, despite having attacked very few castles in all his years as High King.

Then he'd written the pretty letter to Miraz, which he then presented directly to the ruthless Telmarine. Being Peter's second during the duel, watching his brother get the shit kicked out of him…

And on top of dealing with Peter's pride, he had to police Susan's relationship with Caspian. It was fairly unbelievable that they could allow themselves to be distracted by each other while they were fighting for the freedom of their country and people. It had eventually culminated in a quiet word with Caspian before the assault on the castle.

"_Look, Caspian, I don't have a problem with you and Susan hitting it off… really, I'm thrilled. But is there any way you could be more discreet?"_

"_What do you mean?" _

"_I mean that as public figures, everyone is watching you; your subjects are watching you, wanting to make sure that you're up to the job of leading them. We're watching you, we want to know we can leave Narnia with you and know it's safe. We're at war – that means personal desires take a back seat to royal duty." He ran a hand through his hair, "Do you understand? We need all of your attention on the assault tonight." _

It hadn't been pretty, but it had to be done. And after that they'd managed to keep their eyes off of each other for an admirable amount of time.

Nevertheless, Edmund was sure that out of all the Pevensies, _he_ was going to be the one who ended up prematurely grey from stress.

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**So… whaddya think? I'll admit I'm not impressed with how I finished this… but Edmund's my big weakness so I really self-indulgently let him have the last word. **

**Please let me know your views, I can take it. [That's a lie, I relish it!] **


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